Are You Losing Sleep?
What are the common sleep disorders?
Sleep apnea: People with sleep apnea do not breathe properly during sleep. This can lead to daytime sleepiness and may contribute to high blood pressure, heart failure, heart attacks and stroke. Warning signs of sleep apnea include loud snoring, excessive daytime sleepiness, gasping, pauses in breathing, irritability, depression and forgetfulness.
Insomnia: Insomnia is an inability to fall asleep or stay asleep, either for a temporary or extended amount of time. Ten percent of the population regularly suffers from insomnia.
Narcolepsy: This condition is marked by excessive drowsiness during the day, with a tendency to sleep to inappropriate times. These patients often suffer from cataplexy, which is muscle weakness or collapse triggered by stress or strong emotions.
RLS (Restless Leg Syndrome): RLS is described as a "creepy, crawly" sensation that occurs in the legs when patients are sitting or lying still, especially at bedtime. It is felt most often in the calves and relieved by movement. Although it occurs when a patient is awake, it can affect the ability to fall asleep and can result in extreme fatigue and excessive sleepiness during the day.
PLMD (Periodic Limb Movement Disorder): These are repetitive, involuntary movements (of the legs, and occasionally the arms) that usually begin when asleep. Patients with PLMD may have difficulty falling asleep, remaining asleep, or may experience excessive daytime sleepiness.
REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep behavior disorder: All body muscles (except those used in breathing or movement of the eyes) are normally paralyzed during REM sleep. In some people, usually older men, the paralysis is incomplete or absent and allows them to violently "act out" their dreams. Acting out of dreams can potentially lead to injury of the patient or bed partner.
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